Zepto, a ten-minute grocery delivery app operated by Kiranakart Technologies Pvt Ltd, has reportedly secured funding of USD 60 million (approximately Rs 444 crore) in an early-stage round initiated by Glade Brook Capital, at a valuation of USD 225 million (Rs 1,665 crore).

Y Combinator and Nexus are other companies that participated in the round. In addition, individual investors like Lachy Groom, the former Head of Stripe; Manik Gupta, an Executive of Microsoft; and Neeraj Arora, the former Chief Business Officer of WhatsApp also took part in the round.

The company plans to expand its business across Bengaluru, Mumbai, and Delhi NCR and will be unveiling in areas across Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Pune over the next 30 days.

Kaivalya Vohra, the Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer at Zepto stated that consumers prefer a rapid delivery experience and that the company’s data is a testament to the fact. He added that the NPS of the company rapidly increased and consistently stayed at 85 with over 50% Week-on-Week rate of user retention once it started delivering in 10 minutes. This data showcases the immense consumer response to its product.

Aadit Palicha, the Chief Executive Officer of Zepto cited that the company is growing at a consistent rate of 200% every month. This is possible with a robust product infrastructure, deep access to institutional capital, and a dedicated team, he added.

Since the advent of the pandemic, the hyperlocal sector has witnessed substantial competition as several customers shifted to online commerce.

Foodtech giants Swiggy and Zomato entered this sector with ten-minute deliveries across select cities. On August 2021, Grofers, a Zomato-backed delivery company, announced ten-minute deliveries across ten Indian cities. On the other hand, hyperlocal delivery company Dunzo unveiled its under 19-minute delivery service in Bengaluru.

For the record, Zepto is a delivery company co-founded by Kaivalya Vohra and Aadit Palicha. The company operates with its micro-warehouse, or ‘cloud store’ network to deliver groceries within ten minutes.

Source credits:

https://www.vccircle.com/grocery-delivery-app-zepto-raises-60-mn-led-by-glade-brook-capital-valued-at-225-mn